Moving On
by Tanguay18
Summary: Sara is sick of things in Las Vegas. Between Grissom and heading for burnout, she realizes it's time for something to change. Of course, things may not be as easy and simple as they seem. [Set post Unbearable[complete]
1. Chapter 1

**Moving On**

_Disclaimer:_ I obviously still do not own the rights to CSI.

_Spoilers:_ This story has spoilers for Nesting Dolls, Unbearable and basically anything through season five.

_Summary: _Sara has been getting sick of her life in Las Vegas and she makes a big career decision. It is time for her to get over Grissom and move on.

News always had a way of leaking out and traveling quickly around the Las Vegas Crime Lab. So it was no big shock when Grissom's dinner invitation to Sofia got around to Sara. She accidentally overheard a couple of lab techs talking about as they brushed past the layout room. At first Sara was not sure what to think, this wasn't entirely shocking news to her. It was in the sense that Grissom was being so bold as to invite someone out to dinner, but Sara had seen this one coming. It didn't hurt any less, particularly after she had poured her heart out to him. Now he was going on a date with Sofia. She quietly finished the case she was working on and left the lab without sticking around to say goodbye to anyone after shift.

Sara had decided it was finally time to think about saying goodbye to Las Vegas. She pulled out of the lab parking lot and headed to her apartment. She had recently heard of an opening in a Colorado crime lab and she was going to call and find out if they still needed someone. She had spent too many years in Las Vegas and it finally felt like the right time to uproot herself and move on to a new lab. Especially after her latest scene with Ecklie, as she had told Greg, it felt good, but she was damn lucky to even still have a job. In fact, if that had made it into her record, she might have a hard time getting transferred to Colorado.

At her apartment, Sara found the piece of paper where she had written down the contact information for the Denver Crime Lab. She dialed the number and waited a few minutes until she was transferred to the head of that lab.

"Hello, my name is Sara Sidle and I'm CSI level 3 at the Las Vegas Crime Lab. I was just wondering if you still had that opening," Sara explained.

"I'm Fred Mayer, the head of the Denver Crime Lab. Yes we still have the open position. So you are wanting a transfer from Vegas? May I ask why? That's an excellent lab," Mayer said.

"I just need a change of scenery," Sara told him. And it was the truth. She did need to get out and be somewhere new, and it certainly didn't hurt that she was going to get away from some certain people at the Vegas lab. When she realized Grissom had moved on, she decided it was high time she did so as well. She was still upset that Grissom was interested in Sofia, she secretly hated Sofia with a burning passion and leaving Vegas sounded like a great idea.

"Okay, well have your supervisor fax me your information tomorrow and maybe we'll set up an interview. You do think you'd be able to get here for a day or two, right?" Mayer asked.

"That shouldn't be a problem," Sara wrote down the information she needed.

"Okay, I'll call you after I get your information and see about setting up an interview," Mayer finished.

"Goodbye," Sara hung up.

Sara flopped down on her couch and rubbed her temples briefly. There was no turning back now, she was really going through with this. Of course, the Colorado lab could always refuse to hire her, but now Grissom was going to know she was planning to leave. He'd have to find out soon enough anyway because if she was leaving, he'd have to sign her transfer papers.

* * *

"You want me to what?" Grissom looked at her quizzically. 

"I said I want you to fax my records to the Denver Crime Lab. They have a position open and I've been thinking about leaving here for a while," Sara explained flatly.

"Sara, I don't know about this," Grissom took off his glasses.

"Grissom, this is not up for debate," Sara crossed her arms, "besides, they just want to know if they would even consider hiring me at this point."

"You don't really want to leave do you?" Grissom asked, "this isn't because of what you told me before?"

"Grissom, honestly, you are full of yourself sometimes," Sara snapped, "this isn't about you. This about me. I have been spiraling downhill, and you of all people should know that. I think a change of scenery would do me some good. I'm lucky I even have a job here."

"You wouldn't if I hadn't claimed your outburst was because of my poor management skills," Grissom sighed.

"You should have let Ecklie fire me," Sara slumped in her chair, "we all know I deserved it."

"But that would have really hurt your chances of getting a job somewhere else," Grissom said.

"That may be, but you shouldn't have taken credit for my bad attitude," Sara glanced up at Grissom's face.

"Sara…I know things have been bad between us. I just really hope you aren't leaving because of me," Grissom said, "this isn't because of Sofia is it?"

"What?" Sara feigned innocence.

"I took her out to dinner. You aren't leaving because I went out with her and not you?" Grissom asked.

"No," Sara snorted indignantly, "I really want to move elsewhere with my career."

"Okay, if you promise me that this isn't because of me," Grissom told her, "I'll fax your information to Colorado."

"This really isn't up to you, Grissom, and it certainly isn't because of you," Sara stood, "so I'd appreciate it if you could send my records to Denver. And I'm going to need to put in for two days off if I get an interview."

"Fine," Grissom stared after her as she walked away. He couldn't believe she was seriously considering leaving. Of course, it was more than likely his own fault. He had pushed her away more than enough times.

Grissom pulled out Sara's file and proceeded to fax her information to Denver. He had been really tempted to "forget" to send them, but it would be wrong for him to tamper with her career. He had already done so once by bringing her to Vegas. Of course, she hadn't protested, but then look where it had lead her. She was growing ever closer to burnout and maybe leaving Vegas would be good for her. If it came down to it, he would give her a very good recommendation.

Sara managed to avoid Grissom for most of the rest of the shift. It was easy to do lately, his attention always seemed to be focused on Sofia. Sara hated that Sofia was getting the attention that she used to want so badly. Of course since she told the tale of her tragic childhood to Grissom, she had been more than happy to get some distance from him. Even before that, she had been slowly losing her attraction to Grissom. Since telling him of her childhood though, she felt very exposed around him and she still knew nothing about his own childhood.

A/N: This story came to me a few days after watching Unbearable. Sara is interested in Colorado frankly, because that's where I live and it's easier to write about your hometown than somewhere you've never been. Thank you in advance to all who read/review. Also…for those who are reading Post-Butterflied, don't worry, it will be continued, I'm just at a bit of an impasse on where I want to go with it. I had two exams last Friday, so honestly I have not touched that story for a few days.


	2. Chapter 2

**Moving On**

_Disclaimer:_ I obviously still do not own the rights to CSI.

_Spoilers:_ This story has spoilers for Nesting Dolls, Unbearable and basically anything through season five.

_Chapter Two_

Sara got a call informing her that after reviewing her records, the Denver Crime Lab was interested in meeting her in person. They wanted to do a brief interview to make sure that she was the person they were looking for. Mr. Mayer told her that as far as he was concerned, there was no reason not to hire her. Her record looked good and her supervisor had included a glowing recommendation.

Sara entered Grissom's office, "I heard you gave me a really nice recommendation."

"You're a talented CSI," Grissom didn't even look up.

"Thanks," Sara said.

The room was silent for a moment as Grissom continued whatever it was he was doing on his computer. Sara sat uncomfortably hoping he was going to say something more.

"Is there something else you wanted?" Grissom looked up.

"I need two days off so I can go to Colorado," Sara replied.

"Give me the appropriate paperwork and I'll approve it," Grissom looked back at his screen.

"Okay," Sara stood up and wanted to say something more, but decided against it.

Sara left his office and proceeded to walk quickly down the hall.

"Sara wait," Greg called out.

"What?" Sara turned warily.

"You know how I told you I was a good listener?" Greg asked.

"Yeah," Sara crossed her arms, signifying that she was not really in a good mood at the moment.

"Is there something you'd like to tell me?" Greg asked.

"I'm really not in the mood for games, Greg, please just get to the point," Sara sighed.

"You know how gossip travels around this place. I heard you were quitting," Greg said.

"How on earth did you hear that?" Sara asked, incredulous.

"I heard it from Hodges," Greg said, "I know, not the best source, but that's why I wanted to talk to you."

"I'm not necessarily quitting," Sara lightened up, "I am looking into an open position at a crime lab in Colorado. I want to move on and try out living somewhere new. Nothing is even definite yet."

"You're leaving?" Greg asked, taken aback.

"I feel like I've overstayed my welcome in Vegas. I came here five years ago to help out Grissom and I've done more than that now, so I figured I should find a new lab," Sara explained.

"I know I'm usually the one who cracks all sorts of jokes and stuff, but I would really miss you if you left, Sara," Greg said.

"Like I said, nothing is set in stone yet. I have to fly out to Colorado for an interview though, I'll be taking a couple days off," Sara told him.

"Good luck I guess," Greg called after her.

* * *

Sara's plane landed on time at Denver International Airport and after she had claimed her baggage, she rented a car and followed Mayer's directions to the Denver Crime Lab. About two blocks before she arrived at the lab, Sara began to feel nervous. It suddenly hit her how important this meeting was going to be. It could potentially be a life altering meeting for her. She stopped at a restaurant and went into a bathroom to make sure that she looked good after her long flight. She wanted to make a positive first impression. After making sure that she looked presentable, she continued to the lab and parked her rental car.

"Hello, ma'am, how may I help you?" a bubbly blonde woman asked.

"My name is Sara Sidle and I'm supposed to have a meeting with Mr. Mayer," Sara explained.

"Oh, you're the woman from Las Vegas, aren't you?" the woman asked.

"Yes I am," Sara replied.

"My name is Laura Simmons, by the way," the woman smiled warmly, "Mr. Mayer's office is right down that way. Second door on your right."

"Okay, thank you," Sara returned the smile and walked toward the office. She took a deep breath before knocking on the door.

"Come on in," a voice called out.

"Hello, I'm," Sara started.

"Let me guess, you're Sara Sidle?" Mayer jumped up from his desk.

"That would be me," Sara nodded.

"Pleased to meet you," Mayer extended his hand, "so tell me again, what exactly is that has you interested in Denver?"

"I think I am just getting tired of the routine in Vegas. I need to find somewhere new to start over again," Sara explained.

"I'm sorry, did you just say you got tired of 'routine' in Vegas?" Mayer burst out laughing.

"I guess that does sound a little ridiculous," Sara smiled and took the offered seat, "it's just that I feel like I'm in a rut and I thought trying out a new city would do good for me."

"But why Denver, Vegas is the second best crime lab in the country and you want to come work for us?" Mayer shook his head in disbelief, "you could probably get a position at any lab in the country, according to your supervisor's report on your work, and you want to come here."

"I remembered a couple days ago hearing about an opening here and I started to think that leaving Vegas might be just what I needed," Sara explained.

"All right, now what is your specialty again?" Mayer asked.

"Materials and element analysis," Sara told him.

"Good, good," Mayer clapped his hands together, "well I know we should probably do a more professional interview here, but I think you are perfect for this job Miss Sidle."

Sara sighed heavily, "There is one more thing I think you should know. I'm guessing by your reactions that my supervisor hasn't told you of my recent disciplinary problems."

"Your supervisor told me that you were recently suspended, but that it was his own fault," Mayer said.

Sara sat back in the chair, "That's not entirely true. The assistant director of the Vegas lab is one of those people that no one can stand. He was promoted to his position and he has been trying to wreak havoc on the graveyard shift. I lost my temper with him one night and yelled at him, so I got suspended for a week."

Mayer chewed on the end of a pen for a moment, staring at Sara, "Well I'm your boss here and I don't think we're going to have any problems. I know how it is sometimes, one of those guys that's just a real jerk. Is that what your assistant director is like?"

"Pretty much," Sara lowered her eyes briefly, "so you're still willing to hire me?"

"Yes, as soon as you are ready," Mayer sat his pen down, "look, I met you, I heard from your supervisor, I like you and I think you will fit in nicely here."

"Okay," Sara smiled a little, "I'll need a few weeks. I have to give my official two weeks notice."

"That's fine, and I could always contact your lab and see about having that expedited if you'd like," Mayer offered.

"You don't have to do that. I will need to get all my stuff together and get ready to move," Sara said.

"Okay, well," Mayer checked his watch, "it's about time for lunch. Would you like to join my team for a meal? I think it'd be a good idea for you to meet some of your future colleagues."

"Sure," Sara agreed.

"All right, let's go," Mayer lead her out to the lobby where she had come into the lab.

"Hey Fred, it's about time you showed up, we've been waiting for ten minutes," a man in a blue shirt teased.

"I told you I was interviewing a new girl Jack," Mayer waved him off, "everyone this is Sara Sidle. She will be joining our team in a few weeks."

"Welcome to Denver, Sara," Jack smiled brilliantly at the pretty new girl, "I'm Jack Creston."

"Hi," Sara said.

"I'm Lucy James," a redheaded woman stretched out a hand.

"And I'm Christina Valdez, everyone calls me Chris," a brunette woman announced.

"That would make me Alex Shelley," a blonde man added.

"Hi everyone," Sara smiled at the crew.

"Well let's get out of here, I'm starving," Chris announced.

A/N: I am really stuck on Post-Butterflied, so I still do intend to update it one of these days. Last night's CSI King Baby was just weird...a little too weird for me. It really bothered me that they had Ecklie actually acting like a decent person...and the fact that Sofia stayed on the show. The ending really made me angry though, it seems Grissom will go out to dinner with everyone but the one person who he should. Oh well. That's what fanfiction is for, to "fix the problems" with the actual show lol.


	3. Chapter 3

**Moving On**

_Disclaimer:_ I obviously still do not own the rights to CSI.

_Chapter Three_

Sara enjoyed lunch with her soon-to-be co-workers and got to know little bits and pieces of information about each CSI. Soon everyone had left except for Fred Mayer and Lucy James.

"Oh, by the way," Lucy said suddenly, "if you need somewhere to stay until you find an apartment, you are more than welcome to stay with me."

"Thanks," Sara said, "I guess that's one less thing to worry about immediately."

"I have a small house with a currently empty guest room," Lucy explained, "I'll give you my address before you leave. You can ship your stuff to my place if you need. I can put your furniture in storage, there's a place about three blocks from my house."

"Wow, thanks a lot," Sara smiled, "you're so kind."

"I figured it might be hard enough to adjust to a new city and I'd help you make the transition a little bit easier. When I first moved here, it was insane. Of course I was a brand new CSI too, at least you know you can handle the job," Lucy said.

"I remember your first night," Mayer laughed, "I took you to a murder scene and you freaked out."

"Well I'm over that now," Lucy said, "besides anyone would have freaked out at that body. There was so much blood."

"I guess we should let you head back to your hotel. Your flight back to Vegas is pretty early in the morning, isn't it?" Mayer asked.

"Yeah it is," Sara glanced at the clock, "thanks for bringing me to lunch, I had a great time."

"I figured it would be good for you to get to know us a little bit, I think you'll fit into the team just fine," Mayer told Sara, "I guess we'll be seeing you in a couple weeks, then?"

"If everything goes smoothly, yes," Sara stood to leave.

"See you in a while then," Lucy waved.

Sara got into her rental car and drove to a nearby hotel.

"I liked her," Lucy said to Mayer once Sara was gone.

"Me too," Mayer agreed, "and in a few weeks, she'll be here full time."

"Great," Lucy smiled, "maybe she'll last longer than our last new hire."

* * *

Sara found her hotel room and plugged her laptop into the internet. She would at least be nice enough to send Grissom a head's up e-mail.

_Grissom,  
_

_Hey, I'm in Denver right now. I just got back from my meeting with Supervisor Mayer. I think he really liked me and our meeting seemed to go well. I went to lunch with the team and everyone was really nice. I think I am going to take this job. I just thought you should know, in case you need to start looking for a replacement. I'll give you my official notice when I'm back in town. _

_Sara_

Sara took a deep breath and hit send before she could change her mind. He needed to know that she was serious about this. She was not doing this as some sort of ploy to get him to open up to her. She had seriously given up on that ever happening. Grissom was…Grissom and she found that after years of trying to get him to open up, it was worthless. Grissom lived his life almost entirely within in his own little world and he seemed to be content with it. What really bothered Sara was the way he was now acting around Sofia. She had given up on him, then a few weeks later, the new girl showed up on their shift and Grissom was acting around her the way he used to act around Sara. That was what had put Sara over the edge and made her decide to seek jobs elsewhere. She hadn't expected to find one so quickly and hoped that she wasn't going to regret this.

Sara went to bed somewhat early because she hadn't realized when she booked a hotel near the crime lab that the airport was nearly an hour away. Her flight was at 8 AM the next morning, not a big deal in and of itself, but with an hour travel time and to be safe an hour to go through airport security, she would be waking up early the next morning. She asked for a wake up call at 4:30 AM and then went to bed.

When the phone rang the next morning, Sara wanted to kill it. Once she was a little more awake she realized how irrational it was to want to shoot a phone. She decided to take a quick shower, hoping it would help her wake up. She got out, got dressed, gathered up all her stuff and realized she had time to get breakfast somewhere before she drove to the airport. The problem now was finding somewhere open so early in the morning.

* * *

Grissom got to work at his usual early time and headed for his office. He turned on his computer and saw that he had an e-mail message from Sara. Quickly reading the message he was stunned. He kept hoping to see that there was more, but it was just those few sentences. Ever since Sara had told him that she was looking into the job in Colorado, he kept hoping she was only trying to get his attention. Now she had it completely and he realized that perhaps this wasn't about him anymore. Maybe Sara had really moved beyond her attraction to him and she just wanted a job in a new city.

"Hey Gil," Sofia entered his office and plopped down on the chair across from him, "something wrong?"

"Oh no," Grissom closed the e-mail and took off his glasses, "since when are you here so early?"

"Does it matter? I thought being early was normal for people on this shift," Sofia countered, "you're always here long before I am. And it seems that Sidle and Sanders are always here pretty early too. You guys can't enough of this place and now neither can I."

"What brings you here?" Grissom asked, not really in the mood for small talk.

"I just thought I'd come say hello. And thanks for convincing me to stay here," Sofia smiled, "dinner was great. Maybe we should do that again."

Grissom sighed and closed his eyes, wishing that perhaps when he opened them Sofia would just disappear, but she did not, "I don't know what to say to that."

"Didn't you have fun? I thought you were enjoying yourself?" Sofia raised her eyebrows in concern.

"I did enjoy our meal, but I don't want you to think it was anything other than a couple of co-workers eating a meal together. I know, I've probably been sending you the wrong signals, and I'm sorry if I have been," Grissom explained.

"I'm sorry, did I do something wrong?" Sofia was thoroughly confused.

"No, it's not you. I promise," Grissom shook his head, "I'm just not in the right place to be dating anyone right now."

"Oh," Sofia said flatly, "I see. Well I'll let you get back to whatever it was you were doing."

Grissom watched tiredly as Sofia walked away. He could tell that he had made her mad even though he had tried desperately not to. Suddenly, he felt a lot older than he was and he wished he could just leave Vegas, maybe take Sara with him, and never look back. But he knew that it was not possible and he was just stuck here in reality. He didn't know what he was doing with himself anymore. He had pushed away the one person he really did care for, and now she was going to leave him. He didn't know why he had suddenly taken an interest in Sofia, she was nice, but his heart was already taken. He would always love Sara whether or not he could ever tell her so.

"Don't you look happy," Catherine appeared in the doorway.

"The night hasn't even started yet and I'm already in over my head," Grissom shook his head tiredly.

"What's this I hear about Sara taking a job in Colorado?" Catherine asked, "and I'm asking you because I figured if the rumor was true, you'd know."

"I guess she found out that there was an opening in the Denver Crime Lab and contacted the supervisor there. She's there right now for an interview. I have the feeling she will get the job, she's a talented CSI," Grissom decided not to mention the e-mail he'd just received.

Catherine turned her head to the side slightly, "Does this have anything to do with her outburst? I mean, she did say some nasty things to me, but I didn't take them too seriously. She was obviously stressed out. I hope I'm not driving her away."

"Cath, I don't think she's leaving because of you," Grissom cut her off, "both of you have strong wills and have been known to clash from time to time. This last time ended in a one week suspension for her, but I don't think that's why she wants to leave. I think this has been coming on for a while. She just saw an opportunity open up in Colorado and finally decided to act on it."

"You don't think it's because of you, do you?" Catherine moved in and sat across from Grissom.

"I certainly didn't help things out," Grissom said slowly, "but I'm not even sure this about me anymore. I think this all about Sara."

"Why do I have the feeling you know something I don't?" Catherine asked.

Grissom was trying to decide what to say, "A few weeks ago Sara did tell me that she only came to Vegas because I was here. Maybe that is the problem. I don't really know anymore."

"She's not really going to leave though, she can't," Catherine said, "maybe she just wanted to explore her options and see what else was out there for her. She'll see the lab in Colorado and decide she'd much rather stay here."

"I can only hope you're right. Ever since Ecklie screwed things up around here, the best thing has been that Sara was still on my team. If she leaves, I don't know that there's anything to keep me here anymore," Grissom sighed.

"Don't talk like that. You still have plenty of mentoring to do with Greg. He may be a CSI now, but he's still got a lot of learning to do," Catherine countered.

"You're right, I would just hate to see Sara go and think that it's my fault," Grissom leaned back in his chair.

"I guess we'll just have to see what she says when she gets back," Catherine stood and left.

A/N: I had to do it! I couldn't let Grissom and Sofia continue their little…whatever you want to call it. I don't like her if you couldn't tell. This story still has a while to go, but it is mostly Sara-centered, especially in this beginning part. The next couple chapters are probably the only time you'll be seeing any of the usual characters (Catherine, Sofia, Greg, Nick, Warrick, Brass etc).


	4. Chapter 4

**Moving On**

_Disclaimer:_ I obviously still do not own the rights to CSI.

_Chapter Four_

When Sara arrived back in Las Vegas she was actually a little nervous about heading back to the lab. She was going to have to act confident in front of everyone, but she had the feeling that there were going to be rumors flying around about her leaving. She was worried about facing her friends and telling them that she was actually going to go to another crime lab. Ultimately though, she had decided this was about her happiness and her need for a slight career change. This was not about Grissom or anyone else, this was about herself. She made sure to fill out all the paperwork needed to make the transfer to Denver and headed to Grissom's office.

"Hey," she greeted him softly.

"Sara, hi," Grissom put down his pen, "how was your flight?"

"It was good," Sara responded, "did you get my e-mail?"

"Yeah," Grissom said, "I did."

"Is it, uh, are you okay with me leaving?" Sara asked suddenly.

"Of course, why would I have a problem with it?" Grissom lied, "if you want to move somewhere else, who am I to stop you?"

"I don't know, I just thought, maybe things might be awkward between us since, what I told you about my childhood," Sara sputtered.

"I admit, I am still concerned about you, but if moving to a new setting is going to help you and make you happier I am the last person to stand in your way," Grissom told her.

"Good," Sara gave him a half-smile, "I have the paperwork here."

"I'll fill out my portion and make sure it all gets to the right places," Grissom nodded, "I must admit that I am losing an amazing CSI."

"You really think so," Sara asked.

"Yes. But congratulations on your new job anyway, I hope it makes you happy," Grissom said.

Sara could feel the uncomfortable air between them, "Uh thanks I guess."

Sara left Grissom's office and headed for the locker room. She was glad to have the official part out of the way. Now she could just focus on getting herself ready to go. She suddenly realized that she had two weeks to pack all of her belongings and ship them to Colorado. She would have to cancel her phone and utilities and everything for Vegas. It hit her that she had a lot to accomplish in a relatively short amount of time.

"You okay there?" someone asked.

Sara jumped, "You scared me."

"I wasn't trying to be scary," Nick laughed.

"I guess I was lost in thought," Sara explained.

"How are you?" Nick inquired.

"I'm great, how are you?" Sara asked, letting a genuine smile shine through.

"Pretty good, but you have to settle a rumor for me. Are you really going back to California?" Nick asked.

"What? No. I don't know who told you that," Sara furrowed her brows, "I am leaving, but not for California."

"Where are you going?" Nick asked.

"To a crime lab in Colorado," Sara explained.

"Permanently?" Nick inquired.

"I hope so," Sara said, "I just interviewed there and I gave Grissom all my transfer papers. I should be heading there in a couple weeks."

"Oh," was all Nick managed to say.

"What?" Sara asked.

"I don't know, I just hoped it was a rumor. I didn't think you were actually leaving," Nick replied, "but hey, you got a new job, good for you. Is the lab there nice?"

"Believe it or not, I really didn't see much of the lab there, I forgot that part," Sara laughed, "I met the supervisor and his team. We all went out to lunch and then it was back to the hotel. It was a very short visit. But the team seemed nice. They all seemed to be good friends. It just slipped my mind to ask for a quick tour of their lab."

"I guess that's nice," Nick said, "you know I'm going to miss you like crazy? It's been bad enough since the teams split. I hardly see you anymore."

"I know," Sara sighed, "but we can still talk, it's not like I'm leaving and never speaking to any of you again."

"I would hope not," Nick laughed, "I'd track you down myself!"

"That's the trouble of working with a bunch of CSIs, I can never just disappear," Sara smiled.

"I couldn't tell you about everyone else, but I'd never let that happen," Nick winked, "I guess I better get back to my case, Warrick and I have a dead body out in the desert."

"Sounds like fun," Sara said, "that's one thing I will not miss, the desert."

"I bet things are a little slower in Denver than Vegas," Nick told her.

"It can't be much worse," Sara agreed.

"Don't jinx yourself," Nick laughed as he left.

* * *

The news that Sara was really leaving the lab managed to get around the lab in record time. Sara was on her way back in from a case with Greg when Ecklie stopped her.

"How did you manage to get a job at another lab?" Ecklie asked, eyes narrowed, "didn't Grissom put your disciplinary problems in your record?"

"You should just be glad. I'll be out of your hair," Sara snapped, "and I told them about my recent outburst. They still hired me."

"That's amazing," Ecklie shot back.

"I-no, you know what, I'm walking away," Sara glared at him and pushed past.

Ecklie smirked at her back as she briskly retreated down the hall. He loved to provoke her, and Grissom. He got such joy from irritating them. Especially now that he was in a job of higher status. It was so fun to bait them because then when they snapped, he could turn around and suspend or fire them.

Sara had been ready with about half a dozen nasty things to say back to Ecklie, but she knew she shouldn't get into it with him. She only had to see his ugly face for a couple more weeks, then she'd be free of him forever. The last thing she needed was another big outburst with Ecklie before she transferred to the new lab. She was glad Supervisor Mayer had seemed to understand when she tried to explain about Ecklie. Perhaps he had encountered someone just like Ecklie in his past.

"Sara," Greg jogged to catch up with her, "I saw Ecklie back there talking to you. What did he say?"

"Not much, I just walked away from him before he could really make me mad," Sara explained, "but hey I only have to worry about him for a couple more weeks right?"

"Yeah. Good for you for walking away," Greg said, "but be careful. Since he knows you're leaving he might just try to make your last days here miserable."

"I really don't care what Ecklie does, I'm getting transferred and unless he stops it, I don't have to worry about him anymore," Sara smiled.

"What would you do if he refused to approve your transfer?" Greg asked.

"Punch him in the face," Sara joked, "or go directly to Director Cavallo. I know Ecklie can be petty and I wouldn't be surprised if he tried something."

"As much as I hate to see you go, I hope Ecklie doesn't try to stop you," Greg crossed his arms, "I don't know what his problem is."

"He's a self-centered, arrogant jerk, but don't go repeating that," Sara winked.

"I don't think you have to worry about it," Greg laughed.

"No, but I might have to worry about other people _listening in,_" she stressed the last words as she spotted Hodges trying to hear their conversation.

"I wasn't listening in on your conversation," Hodges said defensively.

"Then why so defensive?" Greg asked, "no one here accused you of anything."

"But she- ah man. I didn't hear anything," Hodges assured them.

"Good," Sara crossed her arms and waited to be out of earshot to say, "there's another guy I'm not going to miss."

A/N: Thanks for the reviews. I am glad that people are enjoying this story. I know you might not all be happy with the storyline right now, but deal with it! Lol, that's the way the real writers treat us. I swear they live to torture us. ;)


	5. Chapter 5

**Moving On**

_Disclaimer:_ I obviously still do not own the rights to CSI.

_Chapter Five_

The last two weeks at the lab went by pretty quickly. Grissom seemed to be keeping the distance he had been trying to keep for the last year or so. The other CSIs were paying a little more attention to her. Since the team had split, everyone had formed little groups and left Sara pretty much on her own. Now they seemed to be trying to include her a little more, which was ridiculous because she was actually leaving. At any rate, she really didn't mind it because she was going to be leaving soon and she wouldn't have to worry about Las Vegas anymore. When she got to Denver, she intended to try and put Las Vegas and everything connected to it out of her mind.

On the very last day of work, Sara was walking through the lab. She headed to the break room and thought about turning back when she heard several people in there. She wasn't really in the mood for everyone, particularly Sofia, whose voice she could hear clearly. Lately, just seeing Sofia put Sara into a bad mood. She could just picture her flirting with Grissom and it made her crazy. She decided to go in anyway, as it was her last day and she wouldn't have to worry about them after today.

When Sara entered the break room, everyone was in there, the current night shift and the swing shift member that used to work with her. Jim Brass was present too. Grissom was even there, although looking a little like he didn't want to be.

"Oh crap, she's here!" Greg announced.

"Well hello to you too," Sara laughed.

"It's supposed to be a surprise party, but _you_ people weren't paying attention," Greg glared at the rest of the CSIs.

"It's okay, I'm surprised anyway," Sara smiled, "you guys didn't have to throw a party for me."

"Come on Sara, you've worked here for five years, you think we'd let you get away without a party?" Nick asked.

"I was hoping so," Sara winked, "you know I'm not big on parties."

"Neither am I," Grissom added, "but it really bugs Ecklie, so it's worth it."

"Oh and the fact that I'm leaving is just an added bonus?" Sara asked.

"That's not what I meant," Grissom sighed.

"I'm just kidding," Sara smiled.

"Hey this is a party, so let's get to the fun," Warrick said.

"Cake anyone?" Catherine asked.

"You better believe it," Greg rubbed his hands together.

"Hey, this is Sara's party, she gets the first piece," Nick motioned for Sara to grab the first piece.

"Ladies first, Greggo," Sara grinned as she took the first piece of cake. Upon closer inspection the cake had "Farewell Sara" written across it in frosting.

* * *

After a while, it was time for the swing shift CSIs to be heading back to work. Catherine made Sara come to her office before she had to hand out assignments.

"Look, you and I have butted heads several times, and I know we both say things we don't mean. So I just hope there's no hard feelings between us," Catherine said.

"No, of course not. I'm sorry for what I said a few weeks ago and I'm sorry I didn't apologize at the time," Sara offered.

"It's okay. Grissom told me that you had good reason to be upset," Catherine told her.

"He didn't tell you more than that did he?" Sara asked, worriedly.

"No, he just said to trust him. And I do, so whatever it was, I'm sorry. I'm sure I didn't help things out by provoking you," Catherine gave Sara a quick, awkward hug, "so good luck with your new job in Denver."

"Thanks," Sara smiled, "and hopefully some day you'll get rid of Ecklie around here."

"I can only dream," Catherine laughed, "at least you're getting away from him."

"And a few other people around here," Sara added.

"Grissom?" Catherine asked.

"I was actually thinking of Sofia, and Hodges, I still don't like that guy," Sara shook her head.

"Yeah. You get to go get used to all new people and a whole new lab, that should be fun. Not to mention the whole interstate moving part," Catherine said, "I guess I don't entirely envy you."

"I was the new person here, and it wasn't exactly easy to fit in. If I hadn't known Grissom, it would have been so much harder. But the people at the lab in Denver seem really nice, so I think I'll like there," Sara said, "one of them even offered to let me live with her until I find my own place."

"Wow, that does sound nice," Catherine said, "well good luck with your new job and everything at the new lab. I wish things were better around here so you didn't have to leave."

"I don't know, I might have left anyway. It just feels like I'm falling into a rut and I needed some sort of change," Sara explained.

"Yeah," Catherine agreed, everyone had noticed the changes in Sara the past year or more and mostly had attributed it to Grissom. Maybe there was something else too, that Sara was not telling them.

"I better get back to the party before they wonder what happened," Sara said.

"Well, if I don't see you again before you leave, goodbye," Catherine told her.

"Goodbye," Sara returned.

Nick and Warrick each caught Sara to say goodbye before she headed back to the break room. Her goodbyes with Nick almost made both of them cry.

"Hey, some tough guy you are," Sara joked to stop the tears.

"What do you mean?" Nick quickly hid any evidence of tears.

"I saw your eyes glistening," Sara teased.

"You saw nothing," Nick poked her, "I really am going to miss you, Sara."

"I'll miss you too, Nick, maybe you can come visit me on your next vacation, if you don't have plans for anything better," Sara suggested.

"Oh you can count on me coming to see you," Nick grinned, "you can't get rid of me that easily."

Sara laughed, "I don't want to get rid of you. I'm just getting a new job before I burn out."

"Good luck in Denver, Sara," Nick kissed her cheek, "I better report to my boss before I get in trouble."

Sara had to take a minute to gather herself before re-entering the break room. This was turning out to be a little harder than she originally thought. At least she had the rest of the night before the others said their goodbyes. If they all said goodbye now, she might lose it.

"Grissom had to go back to his office and I'm not sure where Sofia went," Greg announced when Sara spotted only Brass sitting with him.

"And I've got to be going too," Brass told her, "but I wanted to wait in case I don't see you again tonight. Walk with me, Sidle."

Sara followed Brass out of the lab and towards his car.

"I just didn't want to say goodbye in front of Greg," Brass explained, "I can't believe you're leaving."

"It did come up suddenly, I realize that, but I think I need this," Sara said.

"Yes, well just take care of yourself, and if you ever get into any kind of trouble and you need my help, don't be afraid to call me," Brass told her.

"Thanks, I'll remember that," Sara smiled, "I think this move will be good for everyone. I have the feeling I'm bringing everyone else down with me."

"Are you still drinking?" Brass asked.

"No," Sara furrowed her brow, "how'd you know about that?"

"I saw you popping cough drops that one time, then I heard about your almost arrest for DUI. Things get around the police department just like they do around the lab. I put a stop to any rumors before they got carried away," Brass explained.

"Really? I never knew that. Thanks for that. I promise, I'm not drinking anymore. Grissom made me see a counselor and I realized I was self-destructing," Sara admitted.

"Good, it's hard to stop, but I'm glad to hear you've got things under control. I guess goodbye and good luck to you," Brass told her.

"Goodbye and thanks Jim," Sara said as he got in his car.

Sara watched Brass drive away and thought about his words to her. The more people she had to say goodbye to, the harder she realized this was going to be. She took a few deep breaths and reminded herself of all the reason she had for moving to Denver. It would be hard at first, but she'd get used to it and hopefully end up happier. It was nearly time for shift to start, so she headed back for the break room where Sofia was now sitting with Greg again.

"Hey Sara, ready to start your last shift?" Sofia asked.

"I'm ready to just get it over with," Sara sat next to Greg at the table.

"I made my special coffee for you Sara," Greg handed her a cup, "for your last night here."

"Thanks Greg," Sara took the cup and sipped, "now I'm going to miss this."

"Ah then you'll love your going away present," Greg whipped out a bag of coffee, "for the road."

"Greg, you are the best," Sara smiled.

"What's so special about the coffee?" Sofia asked, never having had any.

"It's one of the best kinds of coffee in the world, but sorry I gave the last cup to Sara," Greg explained.

"That's okay," Sofia had the feeling she was missing out, but didn't want to press the issue over coffee.

"It's going to be so weird around here without you, Sara," Greg said after a minute of silence.

"You'll get along just fine," Sara told him.

"I know, but you've really helped me on my road to becoming a CSI," Greg told her, "everyone has. So it's going to feel weird with you gone. And with Nick, Warrick and Catherine on a different shift. Things have just changed so much around here lately."

"Change is part of life," Sofia said.

"Ready for assignments?" Grissom asked, entering the room, "since you're leaving Sara, you'll just have to work on a case with Sofia and Greg. You guys have got three DBs at a convenience store."

"Let's go," Greg jumped up and Sofia followed. Sara stayed behind for a minute to get her goodbye to Grissom out of the way.

"So, this is your last case in Vegas," Grissom said.

"Yeah," Sara replied.

There was a moment of awkward silence between them.

"Look, I know things have gotten bad between us. I'm sorry for my part in that. I am really sad to see you go, Sara, you're such a talented CSI. The lab will be missing you," Grissom finally said.

"Well, thanks for the times you have been there for me, I really appreciate it," Sara said softly.

"I'm glad you were able to share with me what you did, I know it had to be hard," Grissom said.

"It was," Sara nodded, "but my counselor said I had to tell someone."

"I hope you're not just trying to run from that," Grissom said, "you know I won't tell anyone."

"It's not that, it's just…I feel like I'm heading for burnout and I think a new city will help with that," Sara explained, "I better go before they wonder what happened to me."

"Goodbye Sara," Grissom called after her, adding inaudibly, "I'm going to miss you."

A/N: Wow, this chapter came out long. It took a while to write too. I believe this will be the last chapter in Las Vegas. Thanks for all who are reading this story, I always appreciate the reviews! I also want to thank you for being patient while I had a bit of writer's block and delayed updating this story for a while!


	6. Chapter 6

**Moving On**

Disclaimer: Are any of you surprised that I don't own the rights to CSI? I'm not.

_Chapter Six_

Sara's flight into Denver arrived right on time. She gathered her luggage and scanned the crowd for Lucy, who was going to pick her up.

"Sara! Hey, over here," a voice rang out.

"Hi Lucy," Sara smiled, recognizing her new friend.

"It doesn't seem like it's been two weeks already," Lucy grabbed one of Sara's bags, "how were your last couple weeks in Vegas?"

"Relatively uneventful," Sara said, "thanks again for everything."

"No problem," Lucy smiled.

"How have things been here?" Sara asked.

"Not too bad. We're actually in the middle of a serial murderer case right now," Lucy sighed, "I'm sure you'll get filled in on it."

"Well that sounds like a great place to get started out," Sara said.

"I actually think Fred is looking forward to getting a new pair of eyes on the evidence. And your lab is known for a high solve rate. We're feeling pretty lucky to have found you," Lucy explained.

"I was feeling pretty lucky to have found a new job so quickly," Sara laughed, "so I guess it's a win-win situation."

"I hope you will like it here," Lucy loaded Sara's luggage into her car, "Denver's a good city, but I'd imagine it's really different from Vegas."

"I have the feeling Denver's a little more tame than Vegas," Sara told her.

"Are some of the stories we hear, about the crazy stuff that goes on there true?" Lucy asked.

"Well I don't know exactly what you've heard," Sara said, "but probably. I've seen lots of weird things. We had one case where we found a dead man in a raccoon suit. There was a whole convention of 'furries'. It turned out his death was a case of mistaken identity, he was shot by a man who thought he was a coyote and then he was accidentally hit by a car. And there were lots of cases even weirder than that."

"I don't think we've had anything quite as odd as that here," Lucy shook her head.

"It might be a nice change of pace to have less bizarre cases. I suppose no crime is normal, but it seems like all the weirdoes converge on Vegas," Sara said.

"So, I got most of your stuff a couple days ago and put it into storage. We can stop there so you can pick out the things you need until you find your own place," Lucy explained.

"Okay," Sara agreed, "I really appreciate you letting me live with you. It saves me a lot of trouble. I can start working right away because I don't have to worry about where I'm staying."

"Hey it's not a problem. It might be fun having another girl around," Lucy told her.

"I've lived alone for the longest time," Sara said, "I don't think I've had a roommate since college."

"For the most part I haven't either. Once I had a friend staying in town, but she didn't last. Said the weather was too crazy and headed back to California," Lucy shook her head, "personally I like the way the weather is around here. It can be 70 degrees one day and there can be a foot of snow on the ground the next. Where else can you get such a variety of weather?"

"Is it really that crazy?" Sara asked.

"Pretty much. Our motto is 'If you don't like the weather, wait five minutes'. That's a bit of an exaggeration, but we do get a variety of weather. We had a blizzard back in March of 2003, earlier in the day it had been warm, but rainy. Woke up the next day and found two feet of snow on the ground. By that Wednesday, the whole city of Denver was shut down," Lucy smiled in memory, "we must have had nearly four feet of snow total."

"Wow, I haven't seen much snow in a long time," Sara said, "do you get a lot of heavy snow here?"

"Not in town. We get snow all winter and spring, but it's usually only a few inches at a time and it almost always melts in the next day or two," Lucy assured her, "snow doesn't stick around here long."

"Well that's good," Sara laughed, "I don't think I'm built for snow."

"Oh you'll get used to it," Lucy smiled, "I guarantee it."

"That's reassuring," Sara shook her head.

"It's really not that bad, you just have to know how to drive in it mostly. Don't drive like a maniac and you're fine. I swear half the people in Colorado drive faster in the snow than they do in the regular weather," Lucy laughed.

"Are you sure you're not trying to scare me away?" Sara asked.

"No, really, you will love it in Colorado," Lucy promised.

* * *

Sara rode to work with Lucy as she hadn't received her vehicle from the department yet. Lucy didn't mind taking her in early so Fred Mayer could give her the basic tour of the crime lab and get her ready for her first day at work. Sara was working the nightshift in Denver, so she was already adjusted to the hours. 

"Welcome back to Denver Sara," Fred grinned upon spotting the newest member of his team.

"Hi," Sara said.

"So you survived your last few weeks in Vegas I take it," Fred joked.

"I'm here, aren't I?" Sara asked.

"Yes you are, ready for the grand tour?" Fred asked.

"I am," Sara smiled.

"Okay, well I don't know what your lab is like, but there's got to be the same basic stuff," Fred started, "DNA lab, trace lab, layout room, all the fun stuff that we need. I'll introduce you to our techies and everyone you need to know. For the first several cases, I'll make sure you're not working solo. Just until you get the hang of how things work here. I wouldn't want you getting lost in an unfamiliar city anyway."

"It took a while to get used to Vegas, now I get to learn a whole new city," Sara said, "but that's part of the new job in a different city."

"I hope you'll like it here, and I suggest that if you don't have any cold weather gear, go buy it now because you'll need it. Of course you'll have coats and everything provided for when you're on the scene, but I suggest you get your own for when you're not at work," Fred advised her.

"I'll be sure and do that, I'm not used to very cold weather," Sara laughed.

"I would imagine not," Fred said, "the desert doesn't exactly bring snowstorms to mind."

"No," Sara agreed, "it definitely doesn't. Sometimes it was cool enough to warrant wearing a coat, particularly in the mountains, but mostly we didn't need to."

"Ah, you'll adjust to the weather here, I mean as much as one can adjust to this weather, it's a little bit on the unpredictable side," Fred laughed.

"I know, Lucy was telling me all about it," Sara said, "not looking forward to the snow."

"We also have approximately 300 days of sunshine a year, it's just not always warm," Fred smiled, "you'll be okay. I imagine your first snowstorm will be fun, but after that you'll be fine. This is our DNA lab. I see the nightshift tech isn't in yet, but this is Diane Harris, the daytime tech, so you may work with her sometimes."

"Hello," Sara greeted the woman.

"Hi, you're Sara?" Diane asked.

"Yes," Sara nodded.

"I figured, you're the only new person around here right now, it's not quite time for the new class of rookies yet," Diane explained, "at least you'll be a little ahead of them by the time they get here."

A/N: Well with Spring Break, I'm finding more time to write, so don't let yourself get spoiled by the more frequent updates ;). Because next week, it's back to classes and little time to write. Thanks as always for reading/reviewing. And the stuff I said about Colorado weather is from experience, I have lived here for about 15 years now.

Thank you to the person who pointed out Sara would have seen over a foot of snow. She went to Harvard, not Yale (at least according to her Personnel profile on CSI page). I totally forgot about that when I when I wrote this chapter.


	7. Chapter 7

**Moving On**

_Disclaimer:_ I obviously still do not own the rights to CSI.

_Chapter Seven_

After about a month of living in Denver, Sara finally managed to find a decent apartment. It wasn't in downtown Denver because the apartments there were very expensive to live in and she didn't mind a short commute. She was pretty much able to get around Denver and some of the suburbs. For the most part, she was always with someone else who would drive or give her directions, but she knew how to get to most places in case she had to go by herself.

"Sidle, I hate to ask you to do this, especially with your friend coming into town tomorrow morning, but I need you to take a case up in Rocky Mountain National Park," Mayer told her, "I would send someone else, but everyone's already in the middle of a case. Park officials found the DB of a hiker. If you need someone to pick up your friend in case you're not back in time, I can see about that for you."

"Thanks," Sara took the assignment, "we'll see if I can get away from the case in time to get to DIA to pick up Nick."

"I wouldn't count on it," Mayer laughed, "that's a long drive. If you only stayed up there until the end of shift, you'd be back in town by late morning."

"Well, then if you wouldn't mind picking him up or having someone else pick him up, that'd be great. Do you think my cell phone will have service in the mountains?" Sara asked.

"Maybe, why?" Mayer asked.

"I thought I might want to call him and let him know that someone else will be picking him up. Can I trust you to take a key to apartment so he can get in when he gets here?" Sara asked teasingly.

"Sidle, you know you can trust me, what am I going to do? Break in and steal your textbooks?" Mayer joked, "don't forget I've seen the inside of your apartment."

"That's right," Sara smiled, "thanks Fred."

"No problem, Sara," Mayer watched her leave the lab, "oh by the way, I printed out Map Quest directions to the park for you. I know you haven't been up there yet."

"Thanks again," Sara grabbed the directions and headed to her car for the long drive into the mountains.

Once she was on the highway, Sara decided to call Nick and if he didn't answer, she could still leave him a message. The phone rang twice before the Texan answered sleepily.

"Hey Nicky, did I wake you?" Sara asked.

"Yeah," Nick yawned, "what's up?"

"I got a case in Rocky Mountain National Park, I may not be able to get back to Denver in time to pick you up. One of my co-workers will come get you and take you to my apartment, I gave them a spare key," Sara explained.

"Okay," Nick replied, "how will I know who's picking me up?" Nick asked.

"Uh…good point, I have no idea," Sara laughed, "I don't know I'll call my supervisor and he'll think of something. If worst comes to worst, they'll be holding up a sign with your name."

"I hate to cut this conversation short, but I have to get some sleep before I fly out there and there'll be plenty of time to talk when I get there," Nick told her.

"Sure, sorry to have woken you up. I would have called later, but I'm not sure if I have service in the mountains," Sara explained.

"See you tomorrow," Nick finished.

"Bye, enjoy your sleep," Sara hung up.

After a couple hours and a few wrong turns in the Park, Sara was able to find the crime scene. She came upon the body of a young man who appeared to have been shot in the head, then picked at by animals. The coroner on the scene informed her that the man had been dead for approximately 48 hours based on liver temperature. The first police on the scene had been instructed to take pictures before the coroner touched the body, and they were sending the pictures to the Denver crime lab.

Sara was allowed to collect any trace evidence from the body before it was hauled away. Except for a lone police officer, she was left alone to process the area however she pleased. The county had no crime lab of its own, hence the reason they called Denver in for help. Sara noted some footprints near the body leading toward a group of bushes.

Camera in tow, she made her way along the trail, stopping to take some pictures as she went. She knelt down in the bushes, noting some blood on the leaves. She took a picture and carefully reached into the branches where she surprisingly found a gun. She bagged it and continued to fan out from where the body had been found, hoping the killer had left some other evidence behind.

* * *

About three hours after she was supposed to have met Nick at the airport, Sara arrived back in Denver. She quickly logged in her evidence, turned a few samples to the DNA lab and checked out. Everyone else from the night shift was gone, so she figured someone had picked Nick up. She decided to call her apartment to see if Nick had gotten in okay.

"Hello," Nick answered.

"Nicky, you're here! Look, I just got back into town, I'll be there in about 15 minutes and we can go out to eat if you want," Sara offered.

"All right. Was your case interesting?" Nick asked.

"Not particularly," Sara said, "but enough about work, I'm excited to see you. It's only been a month, but it seems like it's been forever since I left Vegas."

"Tell me about it, why do you think I'm here?" Nick asked, "things are really different around the lab without you."

"I'm sure you'll tell me all about it when I get there. Traffic's crazy out here, so I better get off my phone," Sara said.

"Okay, I'll be seeing you soon," Nick hung up.

Sara was relieved that Nick had been picked up and taken to her apartment. She felt guilty for not being there to pick him up, but she was mostly excited to see her friend. She was really enjoying her new job and did not regret the decision, but it would be good to see one of her old friends. She didn't want to just put everyone behind her and forget them. Of course, as promised, Nick would never let her do so anyway.

About fifteen minutes after Sara had hung up with Nick, she reached her apartment.

"Sara!" Nick embraced her, "good to see you."

"Hey Nick," Sara smiled, "good to see you too."

"Well, I'm sorry, I better step aside and let you in your own apartment," Nick realized he had practically attacked her at the door.

"It's okay," Sara laughed, "so who picked you up?"

"Your supervisor I believe, Fred Mayer or something like that," Nick told her.

"Yeah that's him," Sara put her stuff down, "I didn't think he'd personally pick you up. When he assigned my case, he said he'd make sure someone picked you up. Can I get you something to drink?"

"Actually, I figured you'd want coffee, so I already made some. Sounds like your new supervisor is a real nice guy," Nick commented.

"He really is," Sara poured herself a cup of coffee, "thanks for the coffee Nick. How have things been in Vegas?"

"Pretty much the same. Oh, except Catherine and Warrick are 'secretly' dating," Nick laughed.

"Big secret if you know it," Sara shook her head, "I guess I should have seen that one coming."

"Yeah, I felt there was something between them for a while," Nick agreed, "Grissom and Greg are pretty much their usual selves."

"So Greg's annoying everyone and Grissom is keeping to himself?" Sara joked.

"Actually, yeah," Nick said, "I see them from time to time, but mostly we're so busy on our separate shifts we really don't get to hang out like we used to any more."

"Ever since Ecklie was promoted, things just fell apart around there," Sara sighed, "but hey, I'm happy in my new job. The people here have all been great to me. The city is really nice and even though I was only in the mountains briefly today for a case, I think they're beautiful."

"I'm glad to hear that you're enjoying things here," Nick smiled.

"Oh, I almost forgot, did you want to go out to eat?" Sara asked.

"I don't know, aren't you tired?" Nick inquired.

"I am a little bit, but since I have a couple days off, I don't need to sleep. You just got here and I'm sure you're hungry," Sara said, "because I know I am."

"All right, but if you fall asleep somewhere, we're in big trouble because I don't know anything about this city," Nick teased.

"Don't worry, what do you think the coffee was for?" Sara asked.

A/N: Yeah, I fell off the face of the Earth for a couple days…or perhaps I had writer's block…one of those is true, but I can't remember which now ;) With Spring Break over, I got pretty busy with classes again, but I didn't have anything to write as it was anyway. Don't worry, there's still much more to come in this story.


	8. Chapter 8

**Moving On**

_Disclaimer: _Don't own it, don't profit from it, but don't you dare steal it!

_Chapter 8_

"What do you mean I can't go to your work? Are you embarrassed of me, Sara?" Nick asked, pretending to be hurt.

"Yeah, I am, but that has nothing to do with this," Sara joked, "I guess it wouldn't hurt to bring you and at least show you the lab. I just didn't want to go in on one of my few days off."

"I'd like to meet your other co-workers too," Nick said, "you know, size up the folks you left us for."

"I didn't leave Vegas because I like them better, if that's what you're getting at," Sara crossed her arms, "I was just tired of being in Las Vegas. I didn't want to burn out. And now I feel energized."

"Yeah, I'm just glad to see you happy. I don't really know what was going on with you before you left, but I knew you were unhappy," Nick told her.

Sara heaved a sigh, "Like I said, I was heading for burn out."

Nick nodded, though he knew there was more to it than she let on. She had the feeling Grissom had at least some small part in what had bothered her. Everyone knew that Grissom and Sara had always had something between them, in fact it seemed they were the only ones who didn't acknowledge it. Then, of course there had been Sara's blow-up leading to her week-long suspension. Nick decided not to press the issue because he didn't want to ruin her newfound happiness.

"So, are you coming with me or not?" Sara headed for the door.

"I'm the one who wanted to come along, right?" Nick flashed her a smile, "of course I'm coming."

"Let's get going then," Sara held the door open, ushering him outside.

* * *

"Lucy, this is my friend Nick from the Vegas lab," Sara introduced her two friends after explaining she was only here to give him a tour.

"Hello," Nick shook her hand.

"Hi," Lucy smiled.

"I have to go put a couple things in my locker, are you two okay for a minute?" Sara asked.

"Yeah, we'll be fine," Lucy assured her, "so you're from Texas originally?"

"Yes I am," Nick grinned, "how about yourself?"

"I'm a Colorado native," Lucy explained, "born and raised. Guess I just never felt the need to move away. Of course, I went to college out of state. I was just drawn back here. What made you decide to go to Las Vegas?"

"I felt the need to get away from home," Nick told her, "no real reason. I just felt I stayed in Texas plenty long enough. I suppose it was partially because I had a big family and there was constant pressure on me to be like my parents. I wanted to get out and be my own man."

"I was an only child, so my parents never really even wanted me to leave. You have no idea how thrilled they are that I came back here after college. Speaking of Texas, I went there one time. The humidity where we were was so bad I practically had an afro," Lucy laughed.

Nick smirked, "I can't see you with an afro."

"Oh it was great, I'm sure my friends have plenty of pictures for blackmail, but I've never seen any of them," Lucy shook her head.

"From what I've seen of Colorado, it seems like a very nice place to live. Sara tells me that if I'm lucky, she'll take me to the mountains before I have to leave," Nick said.

"You should definitely go, it's beautiful up there," Lucy told him.

"I will if I get the chance," Nick said.

"Did you two get along?" Sara teased.

"No, I was about ready to run from here screaming," Lucy joked.

"Am I really that bad?" Nick chuckled.

"Maybe I exaggerated a little bit, but I better get back to what I was doing before I was interrupted by your handsome friend," Lucy winked before leaving Sara and Nick alone again.

"I leave you alone for a few minutes and you're flirting with my co-workers," Sara shook her head.

"Are you jealous?" Nick raised an eyebrow, "because I could flirt with you too."

"Nicky, Nicky," Sara laughed, "let's go see who else we can find, okay?"

"If all the women are as pretty as her, I may be asking for a transfer too," Nick laughed too.

"No no, because if one of you comes, before I know it, you guys are all going to be here and it's going to be Vegas all over only in a different city," Sara told him.

"You know you'd love it if I came here," Nick teased.

"I like you, but not that much, I'm sorry," Sara laughed at the hurt look on her friend's face.

"Ouch, Sara," Nick sniffled, "that one hurt."

"You're such a girl," Sara laughed even harder.

"Sara! You're not in here picking on a victim's family, are you?" Fred Mayer joined the conversation.

"I would never," Sara sobered up, "Fred, this is my friend Nick. Nick this is my supervisor Fred Mayer."

The two men shook hands and exchanged pleasantries.

"I didn't know I was getting such a dedicated CSI, coming in on your day off," Fred joked.

"It was his idea," Sara pointed at Nick accusingly, "he wanted to spy on how other labs work."

"Well, you're certainly welcome to look around, if anything, you guys will be pointing out ways to improve us, you both come from one of the best labs in the country," Fred laughed, "it's nice to meet one of Sara's friends, but I've got assignments to get to."

Sara showed Nick around the lab introducing him to various co-workers and explaining some of the different ways they did things. When they were finished, they decided to go out to eat.

A/N: Just keep it in your mind that this story has a long way to go. I think the next chapter will serve as a filler before some action starts ;)


	9. Chapter 9

**Moving On**

Disclaimer: Don't own CSI and you know this because I'm just a poor college student who writes fan fics. If I really owned the show, would I be spending time here? I think not. But as I don't own it, this is a great place to be ;)

_Chapter Nine_

Sara ended up taking Nick into the mountains on his last day before he had to fly back to Vegas. They drove up in the morning and had a picnic lunch. They spent a good portion of the afternoon hiking and exploring the area. Sara hadn't been into the mountains aside from her DB in Rocky Mountain National Park the day Nick arrived. It was beautiful and both of them took quite a few pictures.

"Well Sara, I am glad you let me stay with you this week, it's been great," Nick said as they sat on a log catching their breath. The high altitude made them both breathe harder than usual.

"It was great having you," Sara smiled, "I kind of missed working with you."

"Oh, I thought I should tell you, your friend Lucy and I exchanged phone numbers, you don't mind do you?" Nick asked.

"Not at all," Sara punched him lightly on the arm, "I knew you'd end up find a girl here somehow."

"Hey, Lucy seemed really nice," Nick defended, "and she's the one who asked for my number. I was more than willing to exchange it."

"Yes and you're Mr. Innocent in all this," Sara teased him.

"It's not like this relationship can get me into trouble if it goes anywhere, we're in different states. For now, we're just long distance friends," Nick told her.

"Okay," Sara smiled.

"I'm glad that you seem so much happier here," Nick changed the subject.

"Me too," Sara agreed.

"I mean it, you're not so uptight, you are looser, happier. I am really glad to see you've changed, Sar, we were all worried about you," Nick told her, "even Grissom. He'll be glad to know that you are happy."

"I'm surprised he even noticed I was miserable," Sara said bitterly.

Nick heaved a sigh, "We both know how Grissom is. I wish I could have changed him for you, Sara, I really do. I like to think of you as one of my sisters. It really hurts me when you are hurting and it makes me want to protect you. But I'm glad that you finally realized how bad things were getting and took the initiative to make yourself happy. I was really sad to see you leave, but if you're happy, I'm happy for you."

Sara turned and looked at him, speechless. She tried to fight back the tears that threatened to spill over. She had never realized that Nick looked at her in that way. Finally, the tears started to fall and Nick pulled her into his arms.

"Thank you for telling me that," Sara sniffled, "I didn't know you felt that way. I love you too, Nicky."

"I don't know what it was, but when I met you, I felt like you were one of my sisters," Nick told her, "and I love you just like I love every one of my siblings."

"Thanks," Sara smiled, "and don't worry about Grissom. It was hard, but I think I'm finally over him."

"Good," Nick said, "that's what I want to hear. It was so frustrating to see what he was doing to you. I like Grissom, but the man is socially inept."

The rest of the day was spent enjoying the views on the trail they had chosen to hike. They drove back to Sara's apartment and Nick cooked them dinner. They enjoyed the last night of Nick's vacation and then went to bed a little early because Sara had to drop him off at the airport.

"Okay, you have to come back to Vegas to visit sometime," Nick told her as they parked the car.

"Not for a while," Sara said, "I just used up several vacation days when I haven't had a job here for that long."

"True, but you owe me a visit now," Nick poked her.

"All right," Sara smiled, "now stop picking on me so you don't miss your flight!"

"Because it would be horrible if I had to spend extra time here," Nick winked.

"It is if you're missing work," Sara reminded him.

"True, unfortunately. I guess you can't go past the security checkpoints, we should just say goodbye now," Nick sat down his bags.

"Bye Nicky," Sara hugged him.

"Bye Sara," Nick squeezed her back.

Sara watched as he walked away, thinking about his insistence on her visiting him in Vegas. She sort of hoped she wouldn't have any vacation time for a while. The thought of going back to Vegas was very unappealing to her. The truth was, she didn't know how she'd react to seeing Grissom again. Being away from him made things easier, but if they were together again, she wasn't sure if she'd be upset or if she'd be okay with it.

* * *

"Hey, you're late," Fred Mayer informed Sara.

"Almost, but not quite," Sara said, "I still have two minutes. I fell asleep after I took Nick to the airport this morning and I forgot to set my alarm. Besides, you're not even in the break room handing out assignments yet."

"Actually, I already did," Fred smiled, "you're with Alex on a missing person case. He's probably waiting for you in the parking lot."

"Thanks," Sara spun around and headed for the parking lot where Alex was indeed waiting for her.

"About time, Sara," he teased.

"Technically, I wasn't late, Fred handed out assignments early," Sara told him.

"Yeah, I haven't even been waiting long," Alex said, "so I think our case is in your neighborhood."

"Really?" Sara asked as she put on her seatbelt.

"A few blocks away, but it's the same area. The scenario is the husband went off on a business trip a week ago. Came home and found that his wife was missing and he found a puddle of blood near their bed," Alex explained as he drove.

"Have the detectives verified that the husband was actually out of town?" Sara asked, suddenly reminded of a case back in Vegas. The case when Grissom ended up doing an experiment for her sake, proving that in fact the husband had killed the wife before leaving for his business trip.

"I don't know, we'll have to ask when we get there," Alex said, "why?"

"Just reminded of a case in Vegas when the husband killed his wife right before he left on a business trip," Sara explained.

"Oh, we'll find out soon enough," Alex turned the SUV into a driveway, "this is the address."

A detective met the CSIs and directed them into the house where they studied the scene. Sara decided to question the husband while Alex collected evidence.

"Sir, I'm Sara Sidle with the crime lab, can I ask you a few questions?" she asked.

"Yeah, my name is Marc Johnson," the man told her.

"Okay, Mr. Johnson, where exactly were you last week?" Sara asked.

"I was in New York, on a business trip," Mr. Johnson said.

"All right, when exactly did you notice your wife was missing?" Sara inquired.

"I came home this morning and I thought she was still in bed. I went into the bedroom and she wasn't there. I didn't think much of it until I checked every other room and I couldn't find her. There was no note or anything saying she was out and it was really early anyway," Mr. Johnson explained, "so I went back into the bedroom and I noticed the blood."

"Did you touch anything in the bedroom?" Sara questioned.

"No, I ran to get my cell phone and I called the police," Mr. Johnson told her.

"Good, we may need to talk to you again, if so, we'll be contacting you," Sara told him.

"What are the chances that my wife is alive?" he asked.

"I'm really not sure, Mr. Johnson, we don't know what happened," Sara said, "that's why we're here."

"You're not going to find her, are you?" the man started to cry.

"I really don't know, sir," Sara frowned, "we'll do our best."

Sara rejoined Alex inside the home, "Finding anything?"

"Some possible signs of struggle, did you get anything out of the husband?" Alex asked.

"Not much. Just that he was out of town, came home, couldn't find his wife, saw the blood and called us," Sara said, "his story seems to check out. He seemed genuinely upset."

"Doesn't sound like your Vegas case," Alex noted.

"I didn't really think it would be, I just like to keep all possibilities open," Sara opened her field kit to collect a hair from the pool of blood.

A/N: I had the HARDEST time writing this chapter! I don't know what happened. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed it. Thanks for being patient with me. With the school year rapidly winding down (only a month left!) I'm getting busier and finding less time to write.


	10. Chapter 10

**Moving On**

_Disclaimer:_ I obviously still do not own the rights to CSI.

_Chapter Ten_

About two weeks after Nick had left Denver, Sara was out working a case once again. When she finished collecting evidence, she headed back for the lab. She deposited her evidence in the vault and went into the break room for a cup of coffee. Just as she was sitting down to read over her notes and look at the pictures from the crime scene, her supervisor came into the room.

"Sara, just the person I was hoping to find," Fred said.

"Oh really?" Sara asked, "what'd I do now?"

"Nothing, I was going to tell you that you have a guest. An older guy, waiting in the reception area," Fred told her, pouring himself a cup of coffee.

"Did you get a name?" Sara asked, "I'm not expecting anyone."

"Nope," Fred sat down, "it could be a witness in one of your cases or something. He definitely knows who you are though, he asked for Sara Sidle."

"I guess I should go find out who it is then," Sara headed out of the room.

Sara walked toward the reception area of the crime lab and spotted a man facing the opposite direction. She froze in place as she realized that she knew exactly who this man was. Part of her wanted to turn and run, the other part hoped she was only imagining that he was actually here. Instead, she closed her eyes briefly, took a deep breath and approached the waiting man.

"Grissom," she said, almost nervously.

"Sara, hello," Grissom rushed forward, "it's good to see you."

"What are you doing here?" Sara asked in a tone that came off a little ruder than she had intended.

"There was an entomology seminar and I figured since I was in the area, I'd stop by and see you," Grissom explained, "it's been a few months since I've really seen or heard from you. You didn't really expect you could let an old friend slip away, did you?"

"I've just been caught up in adjusting to the new job," she told him.

"Well, I didn't come at a bad time, did I?" he asked, suddenly realizing she might be in the middle of a case.

Sara replied, "Not really, I just didn't expect to see you here."

"Oh, sorry to surprise you," Grissom seemed disappointed, "so how are you?"

"I'm good," Sara told him, "I'm in the middle of a tough case though."

"I'm really sorry. I should realized you'd be busy," Grissom apologized, "I just thought since I was in the area, I'd stop in see how you're doing in your new lab."

"Things are going really good here," Sara said, "it's okay that you stopped by. You didn't know I'd be in the middle of a bad case."

"I'm glad to hear that you're doing well. I guess I should head back to my hotel and let you get back to your work. Can I get your phone number so we can maybe get together before I head back to Vegas?" Grissom asked.

"Uh, sure," Sara scrawled her number on a piece of paper she was holding and tore off the edge, "perhaps we'll go to breakfast in the morning?"

"Thanks," Grissom said, "I think that would be great."

"Yeah," Sara forced a smile as he turned to go.

Once Grissom was gone, Sara collapsed onto a nearby chair. Her head was spinning as she had not expected to see Grissom in Denver. She really wished that he had just stayed away from her and let her be. Of course she knew that before their troubled relationship, they'd been really good friends. Just when she'd though she'd successfully been getting over him, he had to show up and shake things up.

Sara returned to the break room and finished reading over her notes. By the time shift was over, she had basically forgotten Grissom's earlier visit. Her mind had been focused entirely on the case in front of her. She clocked out, decided to skip out on a team breakfast and instead went straight home. Her case was giving her a bit of a headache, and she just wanted to fall asleep. As she was about to drift off, she was startled awake by the ringing of her phone.

"Hello," she answered sleepily, her heart pounding from the sudden loud ringing.

"Hey, it's Grissom," he greeted her.

"Oh, I forgot about breakfast," Sara sat up.

"It's okay," Grissom said, "I just thought I'd see about maybe having lunch later or dinner, whichever works best for your schedule."

"Maybe we could have lunch," Sara said.

"There's a restaurant near my hotel. I know they serve vegetarian food because I stopped there for lunch today," Grissom said, "would that be okay with you?"

"Sounds good to me," Sara yawned, "what time should we meet?"

"How much sleep do you want to get?" Grissom inquired.

"I can be ready to go by one," Sara told him.

"That's good for me," Grissom agreed.

"Okay, see you tomorrow then," Sara jotted down the name of the restaurant and the time they were going to meet as she was tired and didn't think she'd remember.

"Goodbye Sara," Grissom said.

"Goodbye," she hung up.

After hanging up, it hit her that Grissom had finally remembered that she was a vegetarian. She mentally reprimanded herself for thinking that perhaps he was finally changing for her. She had to remind herself that he had put her off for years and caused her a lot of misery. She fell into a rather restless sleep.

* * *

"How have you been?" Grissom asked as they were seated.

"I've been doing really well," Sara said, "I'm enjoying the new town and I think it's having a really good effect on me. I haven't been driven to drink in a long time and I'm just a lot happier."

"Things have been pretty good back in Vegas too. They brought in a new CSI and she's adjusting well. Things were a little hectic at first for her, she came from a smaller town, but she's fitting in," Grissom explained.

"Good, how is the rest of the team?" Sara asked, sipping her glass of water.

"Greg's actually starting to really mature. He's very serious about his job lately, I'm not sure yet if that's good or bad. Sofia's still pretty bitter about Ecklie placing her on nightshift and I'm my old self," Grissom said.

Sara smiled, "That's great. I'm sure Greg's just realized that this job is a little more serious. He wants to be taken seriously, so he's probably acting that way to be respectable."

"You're probably right," Grissom nodded, "it's just unusual after so many years of blasting music and all."

A waitress came and took their orders and they sat in uncomfortable silence for a moment afterward. Grissom sensed something was off between the two because even though Sara seemed friendly, she just quite wasn't her old self. He had thought that since she was happier in her new job setting and life, she would act around him more like her early days in Las Vegas.

"It's really good to hear that you're doing well here," Grissom told her, "it may not seem like it, but I was really concerned about you."

"I honestly think that I was just falling into a rut and now that I've pulled myself out, things are looking a lot better," she explained, absently using her straw to stir the ice cubes in her pop.

Grissom sighed heavily, "I'm sure I wasn't helping out your situation. I wasn't a very good supervisor. If I paid more attention to things, our team probably would have remained intact."

After eating, Sara sat, drumming her fingers on the table, "Can I ask you something?"

"Sure," Grissom sat down his cup and showed that she had his full attention.

"Why would you lie about your reason for coming here?" she asked boldly.

"Excuse me?" Grissom looked shocked.

"You said you were here for an entomology seminar. I looked into it and there was no seminar anywhere in Colorado," she explained.

He sighed, folding his hands and placing them on the table, "To be honest, I was afraid to tell you the true reason for my visit, so I came up with a plausible lie. I hated not telling you the truth, but I didn't know how else to go about it."

"What?" it was her turn to be confused.

"I lied to you because I came here to see you," he said softly.

Sara was caught off guard and didn't know what to say.

"I miss you, Sara. Things aren't the same at the lab without you," he elaborated.

"Grissom," she started slowly.

"No, please, let me finish. I know you probably thought I was ignoring you and wouldn't notice that you were gone. But I do notice. In case you thought there was something between Sofia and I, there wasn't. It was just an innocent dinner and I know that must have gotten around to you, gossip travels quickly," he said slowly.

"You're right. I did think you wouldn't care that I was gone," Sara told him.

"The truth is, once you were gone, I realized just how important you were to me. I feel awful for rejecting you for so long. I was hoping that maybe, we could make up for it," he said.

They sat staring at each other in silence for a few minutes.

Finally, Sara spoke…

A/N: To be continued! I had to throw a cliffhanger in there for ya ;) And don't worry, I am busy, but the next chapter and a little more are written, so you won't be waiting weeks for the next installment.


	11. Chapter 11

**Moving On**

_Disclaimer:_ I obviously still do not own the rights to CSI.

_Chapter Eleven_

From the last chapter:

"_You're right. I did think you wouldn't care that I was gone," Sara told him. _

"_The truth is, once you were gone, I realized just how important you were to me. I feel awful for rejecting you for so long. I was hoping that maybe, we could make up for it," he said. _

_Finally, Sara spoke_, "Grissom, I don't know what to say."

"You don't have to say anything right now. You can take a lot of time to think if you need to. All I want to know is if you'd be willing to finally try out some sort of a relationship with me," he told her, his heart pounding in the intervening moments of silence.

"I don't think I can," Sara said softly.

"What?" Grissom felt as if someone had just jabbed a knife between his ribs.

"Grissom, do you have any idea how many years I hoped you'd say those words?" she asked.

"Quite a bit longer than you deserved to, I'd imagine," he responded carefully.

"Why did you have to wait until now? You should have said something sooner," Sara sighed.

"I know, I have screwed things up so many times," Grissom told her, "I was afraid to try a relationship that I knew could end up being serious. I was afraid of possibly screwing things up. I've been terrified of hurting you."

"Didn't you know that by pushing me away you were hurting me anyway?" she whispered.

"I guess I never thought about that," he said slowly, "I know I'm oblivious sometimes, but I do notice you Sara."

"After our talk, when I told you that I came to Vegas because of you, I began to realize that even if your feelings were mutual, you would never be able to return them. I was surprised when you came to my apartment after Ecklie suspended me. I was glad that you were there for me, I want you to know that I really appreciated that," she suddenly felt like she was going to cry, "when I came back to work though, and things went back to the way they were before, I finally knew it was time for me to move on. I had tried to before that, but that was the final straw for me."

Now it was Grissom who was speechless.

Sara wiped away the tears that had threatened to fall, composing herself, "Both of us know that I was miserable and I was going to burn out. I had been contemplating what I should do. I guess the thing that pushed me to look for a job somewhere else was hearing about your dinner with Sofia. I realized I would never get over you while you were right there, especially if you were paying attention to another woman. I thought working somewhere new would stop my downward spiral. And I was right. I'm here, I'm happy with my new job and my new co-workers. It really pains me to say no to you, but I think it is really best for us both."

"So my coming here was a big mistake. I'm just wasting my time?" Grissom sputtered, suddenly a little angry, mostly at himself.

"Don't do this," Sara said softly, "don't make feel guilty. You have no idea how many times you would do something that would give me a glittering hope that you might one day come to your senses, and then in a flash you'd take it away. You hurt me so many times, Grissom. I finally realized, I was just bringing myself down by holding onto something that would never realistically happen."

"But I'm here now," he said, near tears himself.

She sniffled, "We _could_ have had a great life together. But now it's just too late. I've moved on Gris, I have a new life. I'm happy here, you can't just show up and expect I'll come running back to you. I'm sorry, but you blew your chances. As much as this is going to hurt, I know in the end it's for the best. I let my heart fixate on you for so long, and now it's finally starting to heal. I can't let my heart fall back into its old ways, there's just been too much damage done."

Grissom turned his face down, trying to hide his tears, "You're right Sara. It was ridiculous of me to think I could come and get my way. I should have known when Nicky told me that you were happy, I should have let you go. Ultimately, that's what I want. If I can't be with you, I want to know that you're happy with your life. I'm sorry I came in and messed up things for you."

"Even if I was willing to try a relationship, it could never work. You're in Nevada and I'm in Colorado and I could never ask you to leave Vegas. We just let things get too far, and I want you to know that you're not all to blame. You've been an important influence in my life and I've learned so much from you. We can't just let our friendship end like this, can we?" she asked.

"I don't know," he said, "it seems like such a waste to let our friendship die, but it can't ever be the same as it was. If you're willing to try staying friends, I will make the effort," he told her, clearly miserable.

"Okay," Sara said, avoiding his sad, blue eyes. She hated to see him heartbroken, knowing it was her doing. Ultimately, she knew that she would not regret her decision. It was going to hurt for a while, but it had to happen. There had to be some form of closure between them, they couldn't let things go on as they'd left them when she headed for Denver.

They sat, avoiding eye contact until the waitress brought their meals and Grissom asked to take his to go. She brought him a carryout box and he carelessly dumped his meal inside and stood.

He took a deep breath, "Goodbye Sara."

"Bye," she said, her voice barely above a whisper and not even looking up. She couldn't bare to see his face. She knew she had hurt him.

Sara sat miserably poking at her food until she couldn't take sitting in the restaurant any longer. She got up to pay and leave, only to find Grissom had taken care of both of their meals. She drove back to her apartment and fell onto her bed. She wished all the thoughts swirling through her mind would stop, but instead they picked up in fury. Her head throbbed painfully and she popped a couple of pain pills.

Seeing the sad, pitiful look on Grissom's face in her mind, she began to sob. Of course, this was what Sara wanted. She had wanted it since she had picked up and left him behind, but never thought she'd have the opportunity or the courage to do so. She just had to keep reminding herself that she was happy in Denver, that her life had felt more complete since Grissom had not been a major part of it. Yet when he did say that he was finally ready to admit his feelings, part of her wanted to forget the whole new job, and just pick up and go back to Vegas with him. Then she managed to reason to herself that it was not realistic to just pick up and leave, she had a commitment to the Denver lab and it wouldn't be right for her to abandon them after she had approached them for a job. She had been the one, after all who had decided that she needed to get past the stage in her life that involved Grissom.

By the time she had to go to work, she had managed to get her emotions relatively under control. She was certain that she would still appear haggard as she felt miserable. All she could do was hope that her co-workers would sense that she needed to be left alone for the evening. Fortunately for Sara, everyone else was still busy with their own cases, leaving her to work the previous night's case on her own. She felt the time alone would be good for her mind to focus on work without having to worry about people around her.

A/N: Not quite sure where it's going from here, but this one feels like it's ending soon too. Somehow, I have the feeling a lot of you aren't going to be too happy with this chapter…oh well, it's the way I wrote it.


	12. Chapter 12

**Moving On**

_Disclaimer:_ I obviously still do not own the rights to CSI.

_Chapter 12_

Sara went home that night and flopped across her bed tiredly. It had been a long day and she still felt bad because she knew Grissom was heartbroken. Knowing him, the next time they saw each other, he'd pretend like it never happened. She knew it had to be hard for him to admit his feelings, and could only imagine how much it hurt him to have them rejected. She just kept reminding herself that in the end this was what she wanted. She thought back to all the time he had spent pushing her away and hurting her and she knew she hadn't made a mistake. She fell asleep without even climbing under her blankets.

When she woke up in the middle of the next afternoon, she felt very refreshed. Part of her still felt really bad for what she had said to Grissom, but mostly she was certain she had done the right thing. As she got dressed and ready for work, she sang along to the music she had playing on the radio. Had anyone been observing her, they would have noticed a definite change in her. She arrived at work in a much better mood than the previous day, catching her co-workers off guard.

"What's with you?" Jack asked.

"What do you mean, what's with me?" she asked.

"Yesterday you stormed in here looking like you were ready to kill anyone if they so much as said hello to you and now you're Miss Perfectly-happy-with-the-world," he countered.

"Yeah, Sara, he's right," Alex agreed.

"Let's just say I was finally able to move past something that held me back for a long time," she poured herself a cup of coffee and sat with her new friends.

"Well that's good to hear," Lucy grinned, "did I tell you I've been talking with your friend Nick a lot?"

"No," Sara raised her eyebrows in interest.

"Yeah, he's a really sweet guy," Lucy said, "I'm thinking about maybe getting a transfer to Vegas."

"Isn't that moving a bit fast?" Sara asked, nearly choking on her coffee.

"I guess so. Maybe I should go visit him. I've barely met the guy," Lucy laughed, "I guess I should get to know him a little better before I go getting myself transferred to another city."

"Nicky's a really nice guy, I'm sure you guys would get along fine, you just don't want to make any huge life-changing decisions for a guy you hardly know," Sara explained.

"Sounds like you're speaking from experience," Jack jumped in.

"I am, sort of," Sara said, "it took me a long time to realize what I did was so stupid. Love can blind you to reality."

"Does all of this have anything to do with that man that was here to see you the other day?" Fred asked, having wondered in the break room.

"Yes," Sara admitted, "and I'm really sorry I was in such a bad mood yesterday, guys."

"It's okay, we've all had days like that," Alex laughed, "I seem to remember one time when Fred came in here and literally threw our assignments at us."

"I'm only human, as much you'd like to think I'm a sort of superman," Fred shot back.

Alex choked, "Yeah right."

Sara leaned back in her chair, a smile across her face. This was nice, being able to just sit in the break room with her co-workers and joke about things. There was no tense air, everyone was truly free and comfortable with one another. Every moment, she was more and more certain that she had not been wrong to turn Grissom away. After a lot of wasted years, her life was finally back on the right track. Her old passion for her job had returned and she no longer had to worry about how she acted in front of the people she considered her friends. Things would remain tense between the two for a long time, but Sara had finally allowed herself to move on and that was what she had needed all along. She had the feeling their friendship would suffer, but it would not be tossed aside because they knew a lot of things about each other that no one else knew and they had always had that special connection. The sort of connection that went beyond any other feelings that had come between the two.

* * *

"You're absolutely sure you want to come with me?" Lucy asked once more as they were loading her stuff into her car.

"If I've told you once, I've told you a million times, yes!" Sara laughed, "besides, which one of us really knows their way around Vegas?"

"I don't know, you've been gone for over a year now, will you remember?" Lucy teased, "and to be fair, I've visited quite a few times myself."

"Yeah, Nick told me about how lost you got yourself on the strip," Sara smirked, "and you always flew to Vegas before, this time it's driving, you don't know much other than the airport, right? Besides, you were here to help me out and get used to Denver. I would be more than happy to help you out in return."

"Well, Nick will sure be glad to see you," Lucy told her, "it's been a while. I know he misses you. He told me that you guys were really close friends before you left."

"Nick's a great man," Sara nodded, "you ready to go?"

"Let's take one last run through to make sure I'm not leaving anything behind," Lucy pulled her keys for the last time.

Sara helped her search her apartment, making sure that nothing was hidden from sight. She couldn't believe the first friend she'd made in Denver was now heading for Las Vegas. It seemed strange that someone she knew was going to be fitting into the old lab, being around her friends without her. Of course, she had the feeling it was more than a coincidence that a spot had opened up on swing shift at the same time Lucy had been certain she was in love with Nick.

"I think you got everything, this place is spotless and empty," Sara told her.

"All right then, let's hit the road!" Lucy exclaimed.

* * *

Sara felt awkward as they entered the crime lab that she hadn't been in for over a year. It felt weird to be walking into somewhere she hadn't been in a while. Lucy lead the way, as the receptionist had directed them to the break room where Nick and the rest of the swing shift were.

"Well, well, well, if it isn't Sara Sidle!" Warrick announced when she entered.

"Hey Warrick," Sara hugged him, "it's good to see you."

"Hey Sara," Nick gave her a quick hug before turning to Lucy, "hi Lucy."

"Sara," Catherine also hugged her old friend, "it's good to see you. Looks like you're doing really well."

"It's good to see you all again," Sara smiled, "it's been too long."

"We hear you're really happy in Colorado though," Warrick said.

"Yes I am, I've found a renewed passion for the job," Sara told them.

"Great," Catherine smiled.

"You _have_ to stay here long enough to see Greg before you leave," Nick informed her, "he was really excited when I told him you were coming."

"Okay," Sara suddenly felt a little nervous at the prospect of running into Grissom for the first time since their talk in Denver.

"So does it feel weird to be back here after being for more than a year?" Catherine asked, handing the two women cups of coffee.

"You know it really does, I wasn't sure if it would. It feels like it's been so much longer," Sara blew absently on her hot drink.

"Yet here you are again, just couldn't stay away, right?" Warrick teased.

"Yeah, that's it," Sara snorted.

Her three old friends exchanged a look. It had been so long since they'd her genuinely happy. It was a nice change in her that no one had expected, but Nick, who had seen her twice in the intervening months from her transfer. Of course, as gossip always had its knack of doing so, everyone in the lab had heard of Grissom's disastrous trip to visit Sara. Catherine had actually been secretly proud of Sara for being strong with him, as she knew it must have been hard for her to turn down the man she had spent so many years hoping would notice her. Swing shift had to get going on their cases, leaving Sara sitting alone in the break room.

"Sara!" she was nearly tackled from behind.

"Hello to you too," she laughed as the formerly spiky haired lab rat stepped in front of her.

"Sorry, how are you?" Greg asked.

"I'm great, how are you? You look pretty sharp," she teased.

Greg's cheeks flushed slightly pink, his wardrobe and appearance had greatly changed, "I'm good, and thanks, I know I'm damn sexy."

"I wouldn't go that far," Sofia muttered from behind him.

"Hey! Who asked you?" Greg glared at the woman who suddenly decided she didn't want to be around.

"Nice to see you Sara," Sofia said before she left.

Sara was dying from laughter at Greg's comment about himself. He hadn't changed all that much after all. He did look a little more mature, like a real CSI.

"Stop laughing," Greg pleaded after watching the brunette crack up for what seemed like an eternity.

"I'm sorry," Sara took a deep breath, "I couldn't help myself."

"Right," Greg said, "so how is the job in Colorado?"

"It's going really well. I like it, the only improvement could be if you were there," she teased.

"I always knew you secretly loved me," Greg winked, "but seriously, I'm glad to hear you like the new city."

"So how are things going for you? Are you enjoying being a CSI?" Sara asked.

"Very much. A lot better than being constantly confined to the lab," Greg said, "but we have had some tough cases."

"Yeah, it takes a while to get used to some of the stuff you see," Sara nodded knowingly, "but I take it you're doing well?"

"I'd like to think so," Greg smiled.

"Trust me, you'd know if Grissom thought you were doing a bad job," Sara said.

"Good point," Greg nodded, his pager going off, "well that'd be Doc Robbins. I better head over there. It was really nice to see you."

"It was great seeing you too, glad to hear you're doing well," Sara watched as the young CSI left, "tell Doc I said hello."

Sara was about to leave the crime lab when she heard someone approaching the room. Her heart quickened, wondering what to do if it was Grissom. Of course it was, and he seemed stunned to find her in the lab.

"Hello," he said slowly.

"I take it no one told you I was coming?" she asked.

"No," he shook his head.

"The new CSI on swing shift is my friend Lucy from the lab in Denver," Sara explained, "and I took some time off work to help her move out here because she was there for me when I moved to Denver."

"I see," Grissom poured himself a cup of coffee. Somehow, he looked older and more tired.

They sat in awkward silence for several minutes, neither sure what to do or say.

"I don't want to keep you from your work," Sara said finally.

"I've got a big headache of a case," Grissom said, "but it was good to see you. You look really nice. Not tired like before you left here."

"Yeah, I think the new city helped me get back into the swing things. I was really close to burnout here," Sara told him.

"I know things are probably going to be really awkward between us for a while, but I want you to know that I don't hate you. I completely understand why you said what you did and I should have seen that coming. It was just a shock and I didn't know how to react. You're still a bright, beautiful woman and I'm glad to be able to consider you a friend," Grissom explained to her.

"I'm sorry things couldn't have turned another way, but I am also glad that we can still be friends. I honestly wasn't sure you'd ever want to see me again," she sighed.

"It took me a while to realize that you deserved to say all that to me, but now I know you needed to do it," Grissom shrugged, "life can't go exactly the way we want it to."

"Yeah," Sara nodded slightly.

"I've really got to get back to work, but it was good to see you, I mean it," Grissom moved forward and hugged her briefly, whispering into her ear, "don't ever change Sara."

Sara watched, quite surprised at how well that had gone. She was glad that the pair could still remain friends. She smiled as she left the lab, heading for her hotel. It finally felt like all was right in the world and it was a great feeling. She no longer had to worry about seeing Grissom, or perhaps even calling him for his expertise on entomology if she ever needed it. Things would never probably be quite as easy and free between the two, but this was better than nothing. She had moved on and he had been eventually understanding and allowed her to do so.

A/N: The end! I had to have one more interaction between Grissom and Sara. I hope you are all as satisfied as you can be with this ending. Don't expect too much from me in the next few weeks because it's practically down to the wire on this semester. Just know, I intend to keep writing stories when I finish finals (and maybe a little sooner, it all depends on how much time I have). A big thank you to everyone who reviewed this story and to all who read it, I appreciate all of you.


End file.
